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Punctuation

Comma​

Commas are used to end clauses. In spoken Hîsyêô, this is the shortest pause used.

Period​

Periods are used to end sentences. In spoken Hîsyêô, this is longer pause than a comma and a shorter pause than a semicolon.

Semicolon​

Semicolons are used to combine two independent sentences into one to signify that they have some relationship. In spoken Hîsyêô, this is only a slightly shorter pause than a period.

Colon​

Colons are used to indicate large lists. In spoken Hîsyêô, this is a long pause and a slight intonation change to the word just prior to the colon.

Em Dash​

Anytime you would use a comma or other punctuation to indicate a pause, use the em dash. Commas have a specific usage in Hîsyêô which is best preserved (even though the spoken—or rather, unspoken—effect is the same). In spoken Hîsyêô, this either an abrupt pause which upsets the natural prosody of the speeech or it fits rhythmically in the pattern of speech as a rest.

Question Marks​

Question marks are placed surrounding a sentence that is a question. This isn't necessary for the sentence to be interpreted as a question but it indicates that the speech pattern is one of a rising question intonation.

Quotation Marks​

Quotation marks are used to surround direct speech. In spoken Hîsyêô, sometimes there is a short pause before and after to indicate a direct quote.

Proper Name Marks​

In the Latin script, a capital letter is used to indicate a proper name and it will always be directly after a word (the nucleus) or phrase that indicates what that name is for. In spoken Hîsyêô, there is a slight pause and often an intonation change. If the nucleus is a single word, the stress can often be suppressed completely and shifted over to the proper name.

Exclamation Point​

There is no exclamation point in Hîsyêô. If you want to indicate that a sentence is aggressive or emotional, use the ze sentence ending particle. If you want to indicate that a sentence is delivered with shock, surprise, dismay, or excitement, use the foxo sentence ending particle.